Child's Play
by Lionwings
Summary: When Cloud went out for the day, he never expected to lose everything. Clack


**Author's Note: I apologize if this is really bad. It's for a prompt that I got from my friend Malicious Ink during French class last year. I've been trying to write it for a year... and it seems a bit anti-climatic when I look at it too... Oh well. This is a Clack Story. I wanted it to be a Clack if you squint, but it turned out to be full on romance... So yeah. I hope you enjoy it. Thanks to Malicious Ink and oneloneflower for Betaing! **

**Disclaimer: I own nothing at all :P  
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><p>Child's Play<p>

Nothing is ever easy, especially when it comes to life. Life is just one hard thing to make easy. Some people can attempt to make it look as such, but to no avail. Some people face horrible truths that no one could ever imagine facing, especially at a young age. Some find comfort in others; some even end their life to find a way out.

Cloud Strife sat silently on the swing overlooking the small playground. His mother had told him to go outside and play, but he didn't want to. The only thing that ever happened when he went outside was him tripping or being pushed by a big kid. It wasn't fun and Cloud was sick of getting band-aids on his elbows. He watched the other kids playing on the slide and wondered why they had so much fun with such trivial things. It didn't make much sense to him.

He hopped down from his swing and walked down the small path to the deep part of the park. In the center was a dense cluster of trees that Cloud liked hiding in for some privacy. His mother told him that it was dangerous in there, but he didn't listen. He was never hurt before and knew the whole "forest" by heart better than anyone else.

The cluster was darker than usual, but it was a cloudy day, so Cloud didn't think of it much as he walked out onto a branch and took a seat. The people were walking by the trees on their way to work, and many of them didn't even take notice of the little blond sitting among the tall trees. The ones that did shook their head at the youthfulness of the child and kept walking. It wasn't their problem if the kid hurt himself.

Cloud just sat there and watched those people, trying to pick out the ones he knew and the ones that he had seen walking down the path before. He could almost name each of the people that walked by and exactly when they would. There was the blond old man with a toothpick in his mouth that would swear up a storm as he rushed to his old car repair shop, the young brunette that would walk calmly and quietly to her flower shop with a small smile on her face, the little girl that was dressed up as a ninja and would throw around paper ninja stars at people, and many more that Cloud would always seem walking in the park. Those three were always there and normally they would notice him and wave, or at least the brunette and the ninja girl would. The old man would just scoff and mumble something about rotten kids sitting in trees.

Cloud was happy; he was having a lot of fun people watching. It wasn't until the lunch rush that he noticed something amiss. He suddenly felt like he was being watched, but he couldn't see anyone around. He was completely alone as far as he knew. No one else really knew the deep cluster of trees and most stayed away, even the bullies were afraid of the cluster. Cloud shook off the feeling and waited for the lunch rush, where the brunette, Miss Aerith, would give him a homemade cookie. He smiled and hopped down from the tree to go and meet Miss Aerith, only to be tackled by something heavy.

"Aha! I have you now!" yelled the intense weight on top of Cloud.

Cloud's response to this was to stay quiet. It was better that way. Maybe if it was a monster, he would play dead and it would go away. Oh, he should have listened to his mother, she did tell him to stay out of the trees. But no, he didn't listen to what his mother said. He wasn't that smart.

"Um, kid, are you okay?"

He didn't even get to write that will thing so that his older brother wouldn't get his comic books after he died. No matter how much Sephiroth wanted them, he could never have them. It was a fitting revenge for all of the wedgies that Cloud had suffered through.

"Seriously, you can get up now. I'm not going to hurt you," The other said, confused at the musing blond boy on the ground. He put out a hand to help the boy up off the ground.

"Wait, what?" Cloud asked, now noticing the loss of the weight on top of him and the hand that was in his face. Still confused, he took the hand and pulled himself up.

Cloud looked at the person who helped him up. It was a boy around his age. He had long black hair that was spiked up, much like porcupine needles. His skin was a shade of subtle tan and he looked really strong for someone of his age. The most mesmerizing part of this other boy, though, was his deep violet eyes. They were large and kind, with a look of confusion glazing over them. Cloud tilted his head to get a look into the deep eyes that spoke volumes about the other person. It was then that Cloud realized he looked slightly familiar.

"Hey," the black haired boy greeted with a huge grin. "My name is Zack Fair, and I just decided that I'm your new best friend."

Cloud almost fell over at the suggestion. This kid had just met him and didn't even know his name, yet he had just announced that Cloud was his new best friend. It wasn't really normal was it? Cloud didn't understand what the kid wanted. He knew that he insisted to be friends, but no one ever became friends with Cloud unless he had something they needed. But that was silly, the only thing Cloud had was the ability to sit in trees.

"Wait, Zack Fair, you're in my brother's class aren't you?" Cloud asked. "You hang out with him, Genesis, and Angeal right?"

Zack grinned. "I hang out with them, yes. But I'm actually in your class."

Cloud raised an eyebrow. "Okay then that makes sense… But why do you want to be my friend? I'm nothing special compared to my brother. You'd be better off just hanging with him and his friends. I'm usually nothing but a punching bag."

Zack frowned slightly before patting Cloud on the head like a puppy. "I know; that's why I want to be your friend. Those bullies are always beating you up, and I don't think that you deserve their wrath. In fact, once you admit to me being your best friend, I will do whatever I can to protect you from those stupid bullies!"

Cloud gave Zack a skeptical look before thinking about it. What did he have to lose? He hadn't thought about all of the things that Seph had told him about the black haired boy. He was apparently very kind and generous. It was, if he remembered correctly, very rare that Zack ever frowned and, overall, he was nice to everyone. Cloud looked over at the other boy and stared into his violet eyes. They were filled with a genuine look of wanting to help. Maybe he could use the other boy's help. There wouldn't be much of a risk. Even if Seph was annoying, he would never let anyone, let alone one of his friends, hurt Cloud. So Zack wouldn't be that kind of guy.

"Sure," Cloud sighed as he hung his head low in defeat. "Nice to meet you, New Best Friend."

Zack grinned from ear to ear and pulled Cloud into a bone-crushing hug. He picked up the petite boy while still holding him, and swung him into a large circle, making Cloud fear for his life. Cloud was ecstatic when Zack finally set him onto the ground and gasped for air, leaving Zack there to scratch his head awkwardly.

"Uh, I'm sorry about that. I've wanted to be your friend for a long time and this is really exciting for me," Zack admitted with a faint pink blush working across his face. Cloud waved his hand in dismissal at the apology and stood up from the ground, his dramatic moment over.

"It's fine. I haven't had a friend in a long time, so I'm really excited too. So, now what do we do?" Cloud asked, genuinely confused because of not being sociable with other people.

Zack looked around the small cluster of trees. There wasn't much there, except for some great hiding spots and a lot of trash that had been thrown in there by the people walking by. Some of the stuff was kind of cool, but everything else was junk.

"Why don't we search through some of this stuff? Maybe if we're lucky then we can find something cool to play with," Zack suggested. Cloud nodded with a smile on his face and went straight to work.

Zack smiled at the sight of Cloud being so excited at the idea of digging through trash and joined him before seeing something that didn't look like it belonged there. Zack walked over and picked up a small velvet box on the ground and opened it. Inside there was a small necklace with a sapphire set into the charm at the end of it. Zack was rather surprised that it was there, because it looked expensive. Cloud was too busy to see, but Zack looked at the box and then back at him before smiling and putting the box into his pocket. If all went well, he could have some use for the small necklace.

After about ten minutes of digging around the trash, both boys were laughing and running around. Zack was running around with an ugly old lady hat and Cloud, whom Zack wanted to put the hat on, was running away before Zack had the chance to put the disgusting hat on him. Cloud was smiling widely and thought, for the first time, that having a friend could possibly be a good thing.

They were there for a long time, just running around and laughing; their faces flushed and their breath coming out in pants. Zack was lying on the ground and Cloud was right beside him with a big grin on his face. He never had so much fun in just a few short hours. It was amazing and he never expected to do anything near to this. 'It must be because I've never had a friend before,' he mused as he lay there, laughing along with Zack at some stupid joke.

By the time they stopped laughing and playing, the sky had turned into a deep orange and both boys were ready to go home for the day. "Come on Chocobo, we had better get home. It's like 6:30 and my Mom is expecting me home soon."

Cloud nodded, a smile still plastered on his face. Zack smiled back sincerely and grabbed Cloud's hand. He pulled him out of the cluster, not noticing that Cloud's face was turning pink again. They ran through the park and neither noticed that they were the only ones there. They probably didn't think about it because most people would be in their homes, eating dinner. But something was amiss with the whole picture but neither of them saw anything wrong as they ran towards their houses, which were next door to one another. Zack stopped them in front of Cloud's house and gave a big grin.

"I bet you never expected this morning that you would get a best friend today," Zack stated matter-of-factly.

Cloud shook his head, not able to speak because of Zack's hand in his. The other boy didn't notice that he was still holding hands with Cloud, or if he did, he didn't show it. Zack took the other boy's headshake as an affirmative and decidedly moved in to give Cloud a bone crushing hug. Cloud's face, which was pink with a slight blush, then turned a crimson red as Zack hugged him.

'Zack is so warm,' Cloud thought contentedly as he nestled into Zack's embrace. "Uh, Zack, we need to go soon, the sun is going down."

Zack pulled out of the hug quickly, his face red with embarrassment. "Oh, I'm sorry. Uh, I'll see you tomorrow, right?"

"It's a date," Cloud said with a wink.

Zack smiled and ruffled Cloud's hair before he walked across the lawn over to his house next door. Cloud smiled at the picture and walked to his front door before freezing and listening to Zack's front door closing. After he heard it, he opened his door and walked into the front hall. The house was quiet, which was rather odd for the Strife household. Normally there was some noise from the radio that his mother kept on constantly, or the incessant chatter of his brother talking to their father about some grade he received in school. Cloud automatically assumed that something was wrong.

He took off his shoes and padded down the long hallway to the kitchen. The hallway was dark, so Cloud reached for the light switch. He flicked the light switch on, to be met with nothing lighting up. The lights were out, it seemed. Cloud shrugged slightly before slowly walking down the hallway again. He could smell something metallic in the air, and a shiver went up his spine. Something was definitely wrong.

"Mom? Dad?" Cloud called down the hall. "Anyone there?"

The smell was getting stronger, and Cloud could feel himself begin to gag from its intensity. "Sephiroth, are you there?"

The lights were out in the kitchen, and he could see that because there was no light coming from underneath the door. He stopped right in front of the door, knowing that something bad was going to happen if he opened the door, and he wasn't sure if he would like it or not. He took a deep breath, gagging again at the disgusting metallic smell, and closed his eyes as he opened the door. He took a step inside and his foot landed in a puddle. The liquid wasn't water; it was much thicker and was definitely the source of the smell. Cloud opened his eyes slowly.

His scream was so loud that it resounded throughout the room. He looked down upon the bodies lying at his feet. He couldn't stop the tears from falling from his face. His family was lying dead on the floor. The blood was dripping from the walls and seeping through the floor. His mother and brother were lying behind his father. The looks on their faces were of pure terror as they looked through Cloud at the people that killed them. He could almost see the memories in their eyes. He stepped back quickly, not knowing what to do. He was crying, sobbing actually at the loss of everyone he loved.

"Why?" Cloud questioned softly through his tears. "Why? Why? Why? Why? Why?"

He took another step back and slipped on the blood. He fell onto the ground and started struggling to get out of the puddle of blood. He pulled himself up with the door handle and ran out of the room. He ran up the stairs and changed out of the clothes he was in. He knew that he needed to call the police and to get out of the house, but he couldn't stand the blood all over his clothes. He pulled on a new pair of clothes and ran out of his room. He reached the front door and turned back to the kitchen door. His eyes made fresh tears as he ran out of the house and onto the front lawn. He turned over to Zack's house hopefully and started running, but stopped when he saw Zack sitting on his front porch.

He couldn't see Zack's expression because Zack's hair fell in the way of his face, but Cloud knew that something was wrong. He ran over to Zack, and shook his shoulder. Zack looked up at and Cloud gasped. Zack's eyes were swollen and puffy. There were tears running down his face and Zack's eyes were without the bright spark that they had earlier.

"I went inside and there they were. They were lying there. Their faces were filled with horror. Their blood was seeping around them. It was just so… I can't even say it. They're dead, Cloud. My parents are dead," Zack whispered. "I couldn't do anything to save them. I'm a failure. What kind of son am I?"

Cloud walked over and grabbed Zack. He pulled him up to his level and hugged the other boy for all he was worth. "My parents are gone too Zack," Cloud began, holding back the tears so he could comfort his friend. "It'll be okay, we still have each other. We'll miss them, sure. But they wouldn't want us to sit here. We have to find someone who can help us."

Zack nodded solemnly and Cloud took his hand. He rubbed the back of Zack's hand and led him away to the house next door. The house was silent as they both walked over to it. Cloud knocked on the door and the door opened. He gazed inside and saw that no one was there. He walked in slowly and motioned for Zack to wait on the doorstep. Zack, who was like a ghost, obeyed and stood emotionlessly as Cloud walked into the house. A few minutes later Cloud screamed and ran out of the house.

Zack was surprised when Cloud flung himself into his arms and was crying again. He started patting Cloud's back in an attempt to quell the blond boy's crying. Cloud's sobs were echoing on the empty street and were met with a heartbreaking silence. Zack didn't know what he was doing but held Cloud closely. He could feel the shudders running through Cloud's body and they broke his heart. He patted Cloud's back in a comforting way, trying to quell the boy's soft sobs. He couldn't help the smaller boy, but he would try his best. Cloud's cries did finally die, but he wasn't done immersing himself in Zack's body heat. He just needed to know that someone else was there with him.

"Zack…" Cloud whispered thankfully.

Zack responded by messing up Cloud's hair and giving him a smile. The smile was small and barely recognizable, but it was genuine and Cloud could see that. "Cloud, we have to keep moving. We have to get to the police and report this."

Cloud nodded silently and looked towards the house they just left. He closed his eyes and bowed his head before releasing himself from Zack's grip and walking towards the street. He stopped at the street and looked back at Zack, who was still sitting on the doorstep. Zack took the hint and moved towards the street and walking with Cloud. Cloud's eyes were still a little hazy and he didn't really seem to be running at a hundred percent, but that was the most that Zack could have probably gotten out of him.

The walk down the street was filled with silence and Zack couldn't help but see that many houses were left in the same position that his was. The doors were all slightly ajar, and the house lights were extinguished. It was odd for that time of day, seeing as the sun was going down, so Zack knew that the families inside weren't alive. It really hurt to feel that he and Cloud were maybe the last two people in the city. Where did everyone go? Did anyone else survive? Who did this to everyone? Zack's head was spinning with the possibility that Cloud was the only person left in his life.

"Cloud," Zack began looking towards the setting sun. "I know we've only known each other for a day, but I know that I couldn't be happier to be with you. I mean, maybe my family, but I'm really glad to have someone. What I'm saying is, I'm happy that you're here with me."

Zack turned to see Cloud's face. It was conflicted. Cloud looked like he wanted to cry and, at the same time, he looked like he couldn't be happier. He walked over to Zack and grabbed his hand. Zack smiled slightly and gripped the slender hand of the blond haired boy. They looked into the sunset together for a moment before they started walking forwards. Zack's hand was like a furnace, and Cloud's hand was a little cold and clammy, so both appreciated the other's touch. They were so different, but fit together perfectly.

"Zack," Cloud spoke. "What are we going to do?"

Zack was quiet for a moment. He had asked himself that question multiple times. What could they do? They were both orphans, had no where to go, and still didn't know where the rest of the people in the city were. He didn't even know if anyone else in the city was still alive. It was possible that people were still alive, but considering what they saw, highly unlikely.

"I don't know Cloud. But I do know that whatever we do, we're going to be together while we do it," Zack said, looking confident about what he said.

Cloud blushed and let go of Zack's hand. Zack was so strong compared to him, both physically and emotionally. Zack had, even after he found his family dead, become strong enough to take care of both Cloud and himself. Cloud had crumbled after he saw the second family. He wasn't meant for this kind of thing, but he was going to do the best he could. He wouldn't leave Zack behind if he had anything to say about it. He needed someone to be with, he couldn't handle being alone.

They walked for well over a half hour before they were out of the suburbs and into the city. The situation seemed about the same though. The city was quiet, eerily so, and every apartment and office had its lights off. Cars were parked in the streets with no passengers and there were no pedestrians. Everyone seemed to be, for the most part, gone. Zack pulled Cloud along the road and through the parked cars. Cloud's eyes were wide as they passed the candy store and saw no one inside. He wanted to go in, but he knew that it probably wasn't the time or the place.

"Okay, we're almost to the main plaza. It should be about five more minutes before we get there," Zack announced as they passed 2nd street. He looked around for a sign of life, but he still didn't see anything. This wasn't good. "Cloud, just in case we find something that may turn out bad, stay with me. I don't want us to split up, make sure that you stay by my side. Better yet," He offered out his hand. "Keep a hold of my hand."

Cloud blushed and grabbed the hand again. "I'll make sure to stay with you, Zack."

Zack gave Cloud a reassuring smile before pulling him along towards the plaza. The plaza was the heart of the city. It was located directly in the center everything and it was rumored that all roads lead to it. It was the clichéd line that the city officials liked to use to make themselves seem more powerful, but it was actually pretty true. For that reason, everything was located in the plaza: the police station, the fire department, city hall, even some of the popular stores.

The plaza was empty. Nothing was moving at all as far as the boys could see. The buildings were exactly like everything else, dark and void of life. It wasn't until they were at the fountain in the middle of the plaza that they could see a light in the entrance of city hall. It was odd, but both of them decided that it would probably be a good idea to go in and see if anyone else was still alive or available to help them. They walked to the gigantic marble steps in front of the large white building and stopped at the door. Zack was about to knock when he heard a laugh from the inside. He put a finger to his lips and Cloud nodded before Zack opened the door slightly and looked through the crack.

"We would like to report that the entire city has been eliminated Captain. There may be some stragglers but we shouldn't worry."

"I think that we should worry. The general told us to kill everyone in the city. He said to leave none alive, and I intend on following his commands."

"But Captain-"

"No buts, we're going to make another sweep of the city. These vermin will be eliminated."

Zack's eyes widened as he saw the two men walking towards the door. He quickly pulled Cloud along with him as he went to hide behind a large column that was besides the door. Cloud was about to say something, but Zack slapped his hand over Clouds mouth.

"Did you see something, SOLIDER?" The Captain's voice asked.

"See what, sir? I didn't see anything."

"Okay, then let's get the troops and look through the suburbs again. Then once we're done there, we'll come back into the city and make a sweep of the financial district."

"Sir, yes sir!"

The voices faded away as the two men walked away to address their troops. Zack let out a breath that he had been holding and turned to Cloud who looked shocked and afraid for his life. He moved his finger to his lips and Cloud nodded before looking around with wide blue eyes. Zack made a "stay here" sign with his hands and crawled out from behind column. The army was assembled at the bottom of the stairs and all of them looked menacing and absolutely gigantic. The captain stood in front of all of them and yelled something about moving out. The army men yelled an affirmative and turned to move towards the suburbs.

Zack wasn't sure if it was safe for Cloud to come out yet, there had to be some SOLIDERS still around to patrol the city while the others checked the suburbs. Zack had to get Cloud out of there. They couldn't hide behind the pillar that was right on the army's central hub for too long. They were lucky that they weren't seen. Zack shook his head slightly and moved back to where Cloud was. Cloud's eyes brightened when he saw Zack and Zack could tell that Cloud doubted that he would come back.

Zack smiled gently and pulled Cloud up. The SOLIDERS were already marching towards the suburbs, which was, luckily, on the opposite side of the city of where Zack and Cloud's houses were. Zack had a plan, and he needed the SOLIDERS to stay away from their side of the city for a while. It wouldn't work if he and Cloud couldn't get back from where they came. It was quite obvious at that point that everyone else was dead or already escaped from the city. It wasn't a matter of fighting or running, but hiding until they thought that no one in the city was left.

"Cloud, I have a plan, but we need to make sure that we aren't seen," Zack whispered to Cloud. "Okay?"

Cloud nodded and looked at the empty square. It was truly desolate. Zack grabbed Cloud's hand and pulled him quickly towards down the stairs and into a dark alleyway towards their houses. Cloud kept up with Zack with some difficulty, but was glad to be moving away from the men that would kill them on sight. The way back home was long, and filled with danger. It wasn't until they were out of the city and into the suburbs, however, that they felt conspicuous. The city had many places to hide, but the suburbs were wide open. Zack knew that, and was happy to see that the SOLIDERS were far away from this side of the city.

"Cloud, I think you know where we're going. So, I know that we don't see any SOLIDERS yet, but I have a feeling we'll see some soon. If we do, run. I'll stay with you, but, if I'm not there… Keep running, okay?" Zack was ahead of Cloud, so Cloud couldn't see his tears.

"I-I c-can't. I-I d-don't th-think I'll b-be able t-to. I c-can't l-lose you t-to," Cloud stuttered desperately.

"I hope it won't come to that, so we need to keep moving."

Zack didn't want to die, but he didn't want to be alone either. He wanted to live, and run away with Cloud and find a new life, and a new job. He wanted to be with Cloud for a very long time, but if it came between his life or Cloud's, he would gladly give his life. He would be more than happy to give his life for the boy that he had only known for a few hours, but had felt like years. The blond haired boy was feeling the same, but really hoped it didn't come down to that.

The suburbs were very quiet, much like they were when Zack and Cloud came through before. Cloud was afraid of the silence. It was a sign that they were safe, but also that they were alone. It was hard to think that everyone he had ever loved was dead. He didn't have anyone left except Zack and he would make sure to keep Zack with him. It almost hurt to see his house in the distance, the door still ajar and the hallway light still on. It made Cloud want to cry.

Zack wasn't any better when he saw his house. It was the same as Cloud's. The door was ajar, the lights were on, and he couldn't bear to look at it. He stopped for a moment before looking at Cloud. "Cloud, we have to turn off the lights. If the SOLIDERS come by and see the lights on, they'll get suspicious."

Cloud wimped softly before nodding. They stopped in front of the two houses and Cloud ran into his house as Zack ran into his house. It took a few minutes, a few long torturing minutes to turn off the lights and grab a backpack full of things he would need. He avoided the kitchen for obvious reasons and grabbed some food from the stash that he hid underneath his bed. He shoved it all into his backpack and stopped outside his room and looked to the other two rooms in the hall. He didn't know what to do or how to say goodbye, so he just bowed his head and left the house.

It wasn't long after Cloud left his house that Zack came out of his. He was also wearing a backpack that seemed to be filled with anything he would need. The raven haired boy had a solemn look on his face, one that Cloud knew he was wearing too. The lights in the houses were out, and the doors were closed. The houses looked like any other on the street and Cloud knew that they wouldn't be noticed by any of the SOLIDERS. The night had come hours before hand, and it was finally dark enough for them to run away without any chance of being seen.

Zack moved to Cloud and grabbed his hand smoothing his thumb on the back of Cloud's hand. His other hand came up to wipe a tear away from Cloud's face. Cloud looked into Zack's violet eyes with wide blue ones and smiled a big, bright, genuine smile that was on par with Zack's. Zack didn't know what else he could have done to make the moment better.

Zack grinned as he pulled Cloud along the roadway and started to lead them away from the suburbs and towards the city. It wouldn't be long before they were out of the city and ready to start their new life together. They could feel the wind blowing at their backs, almost as if their parents and everyone else in the city was blowing them away and congratulating them on surviving.

The silence of the city was soon swallowed by the nighttime sounds of the deep forest that surrounded it. They both turned before the city was gone and took a last look at it before running into the deep forest that surrounded it and becoming lost together in the trees.

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><p><strong>A.N. Thanks for reading. Please drop a review!<strong>


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